HIGH winds of up to 90mph uprooted trees, plunged a village into freezing darkness and caused a number of serious road collisions.

Hundreds of homes and businesses in Eglwysbach were without power for up to 36 hours when severe storms hit the Conwy Valley last Thursday and downed electricity poles.

Residents were hit by the power outage as Scottish Power struggled to reconnect their supply.

Staff at the local store and sub-post office carried on working by candlelight and neighbours with power helped transfer frozen food.

“There are a lot of elderly in the village who were left on their own in the darkness and cold for a long time during the power outage,” explained shop owner Angharad Booth-Taylor.

Scottish Power’s Anne Benson responded: “At the peak of the 14- hour storm there were more than 50,000 customers without supply.

“Power was restored to around 80,000 customers on the first day. As staff assessed the damage to overhead lines and poles it was clear there has been widespread damage to our network.

“The high winds made it impossible for some repairs to be made and staff were hampered by other issues caused by the storm, such as flooding, road closures and fallen trees.

“As far as we know people who were without power due to the storms have now been restored or offered power, but we have been unable to contact a small number of customers. If you are still experiencing problems please call 0845 272 2424.”

Llanrwst resident Eunice Williams witnessed old trees come crashing down outside her home, trapping her family and neighbours.

“My husband and I heard a horrendous creaking noise and saw an almighty tree come crashing down. It completely blocked the entrance and we had to wait until a giant crane came to clear the way. It was very frightening to witness, we just didn’t know what was going to go next,” she said.

In Tal-y-Cafn a Post Office delivery van driver had a lucky escape when his van was caught by the gale force winds and ploughed straight into a tree.

The driver escaped unhurt and is back on his rounds but was badly shaken by the ordeal and the van is a write-off.